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April 14th 2009

Published: April 14th 2009

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Backyard BBQ

Huge cockroaches, slugs in our bed, and massive bats: just a few of the things we’re getting used to in Australia’s largest and most cosmopolitan city. Our first few days in Sydney have been a whirlwind of activity; getting things sorted, catching up with old friends, and exploring the city. We spent a few days in Auckland after leaving Rarotonga, and found ourselves wishing we had those extra few days in Raro instead. Auckland, although a nice city, didn’t strike either of us as anything special or different, though we know this isn’t indicative of New Zealand as a whole, and we will definitely be back there again to do some travelling before we leave this side of the world. Our sixth and final flight of the long haul here brought us to Sydney on the eve of the 7th, and after catching up with Lisa (a close Australia friend with whom we’re staying ), we were informed that we’d be attending a big promotional event for South Australia the following day. Free food and champagne at one of Australia’s finest venues? Sounds good to us! This may seem like an odd first night out when you’re backpacking, but for those

Brooke and Megan

of you who know Lisa, this felt like a completely normal introduction to Australia. However, none of us (Lisa included) expected this free event to be so grand. Upon entering the posh locale and finding our assigned nametags, we were met with free champagne, wine, and sparkling shiraz, all courtesy of some of South Australia’s great wineries. The delicacies followed: pates, gourmet prawn and lobster appetizers, mini vegetarian pies, and crème caramels for dessert. The never-ending flow of free alcohol and food encouraged us all to stay hours past our original intended one hour "mingle", and we enjoyed a fashion show with SA’s top designers, as well as fantastic views of the city, with SA’s most famous DJ providing the tunes. We have to admit: Australians really do throw a good party. Where else would you find such an amazing free event such as this one? The only downside of the night is that our camera was stolen. Fortunately, we do have a backup older camera that we’re able to use. But, alas, there will be no photos of the gourmet South Australia promo event.
Besides wining and dining in style at no cost to ourselves, we’re also been doing

Sydney Opera House

some city exploration. Lisa’s neighbourhood - Paddington - is really great; filled with tons of outdoor cafes and shops. We’ve also checked out the famous Bondi Beach, a nice and laidback area of the city especially popular with surfers. On the Thursday, another one of our Australian friends, Brooke, came up with her partner, so we’ve had a full house. We spent the long Easter weekend relaxing and reminiscing over backyard barbeques. Easter Sunday was spent with great friends at nearby Rushcutter’s Bay with a delicious picnic spread and jugs of homemade mojitos and sangria. We couldn’t have asked for a better Easter and we hope you all had relaxing and wonderful weekends as well!
On Wednesday, we’ll be heading on to Port Macquarie - a small beachside town about 6 hours north - for a couple of days, where we’ll celebrate Adam’s birthday and check out the nearby scenery. We’ve really enjoyed ourselves in Sydney, spending quality time with old friends, but we’re also looking forward to slowing down the pace in some smaller beach towns. After Port Macquarie, we’ll head onward to find a place to park ourselves for a bit and find some work.

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